GTU emphasises importance of Guidance and Counselling in schools

Oct 08, 2013 News

The importance of Guidance and Counselling in the school system is an imperative element to help address the challenge of violence in the school system. This has been recognised as especially paramount to efficiently combat acts of violence perpetrated by students against teachers and/or against fellow students.
The crucial need was recently amplified by President of the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU), Colin Bynoe. He pointed to the fact that although violent situations have on occasions been observed in some schools, such practices are not even permitted to occur in some countries. And should such be the case, he noted that it is seen as a criminal act.
He is hopeful that Guyana can soon embrace such moves in the not too distant future. “In some of these schools abroad it is nothing but criminal for a student to assault a teacher and we sooner or later will have to institute such a law,” said Bynoe.
In the interim, though, he noted that vigilant efforts will have to be made to ensure that schools have in place functioning Guidance and Counselling Departments.
This is necessary, he noted, since the resort to violence by students is often linked to the fact that they are exposed to violent domestic problems. This state of affairs does not however “make it okay for students to lash out at teachers or their classmates,” Bynoe asserted.
Once Guidance and Counselling Departments are outfitted with suitably qualified individuals, there is a high probability that violent situations in the school system could be significantly reduced, Bynoe said.
The process of Guidance and Counselling serves as a means of offering students professional support when they are suspected to be faced with problems that impact their performance and interaction with others.
Once such a system is developed, the GTU President said that the school will be in a better place to deal with students who have a predisposition to act violently thereby, preventing them from disturbing the smooth delivery of the curriculum.
As the representative of the country’s teachers, Bynoe said that the GTU remains resolute in its position against violence perpetrated particularly against teachers in the school classroom. In fact, he amplified, a view vocalised by President Donald Ramotar not so long ago that violence against teachers was a serious matter.
And even as the Union awaits legislative intervention to criminalise such violent acts, Bynoe disclosed that teachers have been encouraged to be proactive.
In this regard, he noted that “we have said to our teachers that they need to be their brother’s keeper and everyone need to be looking out for each other and be supportive…At no time must they (teachers) allow anybody to come in and beat up a teacher and come out…”
“It might be a bad thing that we are saying but somebody, one of these days, has to be made an example when they run into a school to beat up, they get beat out,” Bynoe noted. “Parents as well as children who seek to assault teachers must be dealt with severely by the law…”
Turning his attention to the notion of corporal punishment to deal with some difficult students in the school system, Bynoe said that it still remains permissible though it is guided by strict guidelines.
He referred to a number of consultations held across the country that saw about 90 per cent of the stakeholders reached embracing the continuance of corporal punishment.
However, Bynoe is convinced that the way to go in the education system is for teachers to embrace the call of the GTU’s life member, George Cave, AA, who some years ago insisted that “’teachers should moderate their zeal and draw their pay’.”
According to the GTU President, “ I think that is the best thing; so those who want to do all sorts of things in the school let them go ahead and let the Guidance and Counselling department deal with that…teachers will carry on with the work of the curriculum and draw their pay.”

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GTU emphasises importance of Guidance and Counselling in schools

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